Most Home Care Agencies Shouldn’t Run Facebook Ads (Here’s what to do instead)

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Most Home Care Agencies Shouldn’t Run Facebook Ads (Here’s what to do instead)

A few weeks ago, I was talking to small agency owner hungry for new clients.

They were frustrated and here’s why:

They’d spent $1,200 running Facebook ads to promote their services. Created a nice looking ad with an image smiling senior, a helpful tagline, and contact information for their agency.

After 4 weeks in:

• No leads

• No calls

• No results

They said to me, “I hear all about how Facebook ads work for peoples businesses, but I can’t get one call? I don’t have the budget to keep spending this or hire an agency.”

I search the phrase “home care” daily. Which means I get targeted for these Home Care Facebook ads and have seen (and saved) so many bad performing ads with low engagement and probably no new clients from it.

This isn’t uncommon.
In fact, it’s the norm.

And here’s why:

Most home care agencies try to advertise before they understand how advertising works.

The Real Problem

Facebook is a powerful tool. But not for what most agencies use it for.

It’s not that Facebook ads never work. It’s that they rarely work the way agency owners expect them to.

Here’s the core issue:

On Facebook, people are scrolling for entertainment. They didn’t open the app to find a caregiver — they opened it to see their cousin’s baby photos and read about their neighbor’s new rescue dog.

Even if they’re getting the ad because they’ve looked up home care recently, they’re not in the right mindset to explore home care options right now.

So when your ad shows up saying “Now Accepting New Clients,” it’s not that they’re ignoring you — it’s that they weren’t looking for you at the time.

But on Google?

That’s where families go when something changes.
When mom fell. When dad wandered. When someone’s been in the hospital for three days and discharge is coming fast.

That’s when they type:

• “In-home care near me”

• “Private caregiver for elderly parent”

• “Help after stroke at home”

At that moment, they don’t want education.
They want a solution. Fast.

What To Do Instead

You don’t need a big ad budget. You don’t need a fancy agency. But you do need to stop guessing and start being strategic.

Here’s a better plan:

1. Understand Buyer Intent
Go into Google and type: “home care [your city].”
What shows up?
These are the search terms families are using when they need help. Build a list of 5–10 keywords that someone in a crisis moment would actually search.

2. Don’t Send Them to Your Homepage
Your homepage isn’t a lead capture tool. It’s a brochure.
Instead, build a dedicated landing page that addresses one thing:

3. Offer a Lead Magnet
Don’t just say “Call Us.” Offer something of value to get their email or phone number:

• “A list of essential local services and resources for taking care of seniors”

• “What to Ask Before Hiring In-Home Care”
  This turns anonymous clicks into warm leads you can follow up with.

4. Test Different Ads
Start small. Run 2–3 different versions of Google ads with different headlines, descriptions, and call-to-actions.
Track what works. Double down on the winners.

Why This Works

Google ads put you in front of people who are already looking.
You’re not interrupting. You’re showing up when you’re needed most.

And when you combine that with a focused landing page and a valuable lead magnet?

You stop hoping for calls — and start building a consistent pipeline.

Final Thoughts

If your Facebook ads haven’t worked, it’s not because you’re bad at marketing.
It’s because you’ve been taught the wrong way to do it.

You don’t need to be everywhere.
You just need to show up at the right time, in the right place, with the right message.

That place?
Google.

And that message?
“We understand what you’re going through — and we can help.”

See you next week.

P.S. I’m running a free ad strategy meetings for 10 Agency Owners. If you’d like me to take a look at your current approach and make suggestions, just reply with the word “ads” and we can have a chat!